Search - My Chemical Romance :: The Black Parade

Awesome

FroggyM | Washington, DC | 07/26/2008

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I have 1,400 albums, and this is in my top 100 or 200. Just a really great album."

Go for the special/deluxe edition

A. Y. Veach | Middle of the woods, NH | 08/31/2008

(5 out of 5 stars)

"For anyone who's a fan of the band, the longbox version of this album is a necessity. Little bit of background into the making (did you know that Mikey Way lost his mind??), some great art cards, & I've used it to store my ticket from when I went to the first of the North American 'Black Parade' shows."

Converted me!

asmodean 96 | 08/23/2009

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Honestly, I was never a MCR fan. Far from it actually. I was very down on them because I perceived them as just another whiny emo band like Fall Out Boy or Panic at the Disco. Boy was I wrong. I saw them open up for Linkin Park in Projekt Revolution 2007, and their performance was so good, that I actually went out and bought this album to give them a chance. Since I bought this album, it has become one of the favorites in my collection, second only to Pink Floyd's "Dark Side of the Moon", LP's "Hybrid Theory", Alice in Chains' "Jar of Flies" and The Chili Peppers' "Californication". Being a fan of both classic rock and hard rock/metal, this record was a great fusion of modern and classic styles and techniques.



The musicians do a great job with this one, the drums are crisp and perfectly timed, with some quite original fills, the guitar has a great tone that reminds me of Brian May of Queen, the Bass is understated, but drives the song without being overpowering, and Gerrard Way's lyrics and vocals are nothing short of poetry. The mixing on this album is professional grade, which is more than I can say for a lot of other bands. The instruments work in harmony to produce a unified sound as opposed to sounding like they're competing with each other, and never does one overtake the others to any unreasonable extent. Truly a very well produced record. So, with that said, on to the actual "track by track" review.



Track 1) The End.

A pretty good opening track. The heart monitor that starts the CD out as well as the rather macabre lyrics really set a good tone for the rest of the album. What really impressed me about this track was the transition to the next one "Dead!". It was such a flawless transition, that I actually backed up the entire track to listen to it again! Unfortunately the track its self is a little on the short side, so only 3/5 because of that. Otherwise a pretty good opener!



Track 2) Dead!

One of my perennial favorites, it has a great, upbeat verse and chorus, which are juxtaposed to the, again, rather macabre lyrics for a strange, but kind of cool effect. One of the best things about this track is the guitar riffs and solos. Being a guitarist my self, there are few things that make me happier than my favorite instrument played well. One of my absolute favorites, 5/5.



Track 3) This is how I Disappear

Another good track. This one is a bit harder edged than the previous two, and offers a slightly more "hard rock" side of MCR. Good, and still macabre, lyrics plus a driving drum beat and guitar/bass riff make this a good tune worthy of a listen! 4/5.



Track 4) The Sharpest Lives

Another harder edged track. Don't be fooled by the seemingly inconsequential opening lyrics, this track rocks. Hard. This was the track that really got my attention when they played live, and was a track i listened to nightly in my first year of college. The real highlight of this track is it's arrangement, there are so many layers and nuances to this song, that it still offers new twists and turns even after well over 75 listens (not counting the ones where I just pressed the "back" button to start the track over!) Another favorite, 5/5.



Track 5) Welcome to the Black Parade

Here we are, the big one! The title track! Most of the time, in my experience, the title track is never quite as good as I think it should be given its prominence on the album. Not so here! The opening, with its emotional vocals and soaring guitar riffs brings to mind vintage queen and the main verses and choruses of the song combine drum rolls, riffs, layered vocals, synth, and even a brass section to create what I can only call an anthem. To put that in perspective, the only other anthems that come to mind readily for me are Journey's "Don't stop Believin'" and Metallica's "Enter Sandman", esteemed company! From the beginning "militarily march" like drum rolls, to the swelling ending, this track's a real gem! 5/5



Track 6) I Don't Love You

A good track. A ballad with enough catchy hooks to stock a tackle shop. The best part of this song for me are the lyrics which are masterfully written. Combine that with what (and I'm dubious to say this, but darn it, I will anyway!!!) sounds like actual, real gut wrenching emotion from Gerrard Way, and you have a great song! Another one of my favorites on the album. 5/5.



Track 7) House of Wolves

This may be my favorite track on the album. The riffs scream classic rock, while the vocals and lyrics are uniquely MCR. A classic song structure with 2 choruses, 2 verses, a bridge and a outro/solo, follow the blueprints for a hit to the tee. My favorite part of the song is, hands down, the outro/solo, where the guitarist absolutely wails on the guitar with Gerrard doing what he does best on this album, rocking! hahaha! 5/5.



Track 8) Cancer

Wow. Another slow song, and one of the saddest songs I personally have ever heard. The song, as the title would suggest, is about someone dying of cancer. Gerrard's imagery in this song makes it nothing short of heartbreaking (and I don't even have a family member I've seen die of cancer. I can't imagine how those who have had that experience would be affected by this song.) The only complaints I have about this song are that it's a little short, and that since it's so sad, I actually avoid it, which is sad, since musically and lyrically it's a good song. 3/5.



Track 9) Mama

This track is very interesting. It starts out with bomb blasts and gun fire in the distance. The song is written from the perspective of a soldier who has gone to hell, and is writing a letter to his/her mother. The song is quite nihilistic, and morbid even for MCR's standards. Musically the song's great, combining key and tempo changes, unconventional rock instruments (accordion, violin) as well as the talents of Liza Minnelli. The song's lyrics are actually quite controversial, which is actually a turn off for me. If there are two things I can't stand when I'm trying to enjoy my self, politics and religion, and this song (depending on how you take the lyrics) has some of both. If you don't mind these things in your songs, that's great for you, but for me, they bring an otherwise good song down from the level of some some of it's peers on the CD. 4/5 for me.



Track 10) Sleep

A good, fairly straightforward rocker. The intro sounds almost arabic, which is quite an interesting twist, especially for a band like MCR. That being said, this is probably one of my least favorite songs on the album. Don't get me wrong, the song is still good, but the other songs with it on the album seem to stand out much more and have many more defining characteristics than this one. 3/5.



Track 11) Teenagers

One of my favorites, and a perennial radio favorite. This song rages against society's need for conformity. Again, this song has some of the greatest hooks and is almost too catchy for it's own good. The stripped down parts of this song, again, bring to mind Queen songs such as another one bites the dust, and the rock oriented choruses do justice to the modern-classic rock sound of the album. Overall a great song! 5/5.



Track 12) Disenchanted

The last real ballad on the cd, and another possible contender for my favorite song on the album. This song evokes as much emotion as "Cancer" for me, but it's a different type of emotion. This song brings up more personal feelings and momories, and less empathic feeling. The song somehow brings me bittersweet memories of my friends, who have since left for different colleges and places, as well as thoughts on my own life and the the general lives that make up the human race. Very disparate evocations I know, but that's what makes this song great, the ability to bring up so much emotion from different places at the same time. If you really want something to think about, this is the song for you. 5/5.



Track 13) Famous Last Words

Another rock oriented track that I would say verges on anthemic, especially toward the end in the refrains. This song is the last full song on the album, and what a great ending song it is. Throughout the album, the songs have been quite dark and nihilistic (appropriate for a concept album about death, but still quite morbid none the less)this song is the first one (maybe with the exception of some parts of "Welcome to the Black Parade") that seems hopeful. the words and music both have an air of "pushing on" and continuing, working through the dark times to reach something better. A great song and, yet another of my favorites. 5/5



Track 14) Blood

This mini track serves as a sort of outro for the cd. It's all in the style of a 1920's standard, even the recording process was changed to make the song sound like it was playing from an ancient phonograph. The lyrics are quite possibly the most morbid on the album, but somehow seem less substantial than the rest of the cd, probably because of the "campy" nature of the song. An ok attempt as a song in the vein of the Offspring's "When You're in Prison", but to me, it doesn't really feel as much like a legitimate part of the album, as a bonus easter egg. 2/5



So there it is. I know I sound like a "fan boy" with this review but trust me, I was MCR's biggest critic before I listened to this album. For a person as stubborn as me to go 180 on his opinion is nothing short of miraculous, so please do your self a favor and give this one a chance to win you over too.

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